Nick Saban is settling into his role as a college football analyst well. The former Alabama boss made his first big prognostication Monday afternoon at SEC Media Days, projecting Georgia and Texas to make the SEC Championship Game in December.
Saban, the winner of seven national championships, is quite high on the Longhorns as they transition from the Big 12. Texas, which made its inaugural College Football Playoff appearance last season, is a popular pick to make waves in the SEC. Saban touted the depth that coach Steve Sarkisian has built and even had special praise for a particular redshirt freshman quarterback that everyone is excited to see: Arch Manning.
“I think Texas, if their defense comes through and they can replace some of the interior people that they lost that were high draft picks and all that, they’re really good offensively,” Saban said on SEC Network. “And even though their quarterback has missed time — [Quinn] Ewers has missed time in the last couple years — Manning was lights-out in the spring game. Arch was like 21 for 25 for 347 yards. That depth at quarterback is probably really important for them because Ewers has missed time the last couple years, a game or two, which could really affect where you end up. So, I really like Texas.”
Saban was quick to cover himself if that doesn’t come to fruition, however.
“I don’t think there’s any team right now — or any coach that you would talk to — [who feels] there’s not some part of their team that they’re concerned about,” Saban said. “How those problems sort of get resolved, whether it’s a young player that comes in and makes an impact or an older player develops consistency, those are the question marks that I think make it impossible to make predictions right now.”
Saban also noted that Ole Miss, which loaded up in the transfer portal, could compete at the top of the SEC with a revamped approach to the lines of scrimmage. Rebels coach Lane Kiffin has done plenty of work in the transfer portal, highlighted by the addition of former five-star defensive lineman Walter Nolen from Texas A&M.
As for the Crimson Tide team that Saban built into a powerhouse? While he certainly wasn’t down on them, he did identify one major area that gave him pause when projection an eventual SEC Championship Game appearance.
“I believe in our Alabama team, too,” Saban said. “And I believe in [quarterback] Jalen Milroe. I just think the question marks in the secondary, until those get resolved, it’s hard to sort of jump on that bandwagon.”
